I'm jumping the gun a little bit here, because nothing has formally been announced yet, but several clues have been appearing recently that the release of the next-generation XTR premium MTB groupset is imminent. Firstly, the timing is right in Shimano's production run schedule. Secondly, over the past couple of weeks Shimano have been publishing social media "Throwback Thursday" posts featuring past generations of XTR - a sure sign that Something New is on the way. Finally, a close dig through the Techdocs product specifications gives some insights into what's coming, without yet revealing any actual new product details.

So, the subtle indications are that it will be built around a 12-sp. system. Not at all surprising given SRAM brought it in with Eagle a couple of years ago. Whether it retains multi-chainring capability like 11-sp. does (current M9000 is the only groupset anywhere that offers a massive 3x11 option; M8000 XT & M7000 SLX offer 2x11, SRAM is dedicated 1x), or is strictly 1x like SRAM is not yet known. It's not inconceivable - but probably unlikely - that like SLX's 1/2x11 & 3x10 mix that M9100 could offer a mix of 11- & 12-sp. options. It also appears that like SRAM, the cassettes will go down to a 10T top gear, which will dictate a change in freewheel body design, because 11T is the smallest that can fit on the standard hub design. Again, whether Shimano swallow their ego and adopt the SRAM XD freewheel body design or do their own thing remains to be seen, although the latter would not surprise me..... (They could also pull out the old Capreo 9T-compatible hub design uprated to XTR-tech, which would give then a top gear edge over Eagle....) What happens at the other end of the cassette is also unknown, but expect similar to Eagle's 50T big sprocket.

I'll fill the details in as they're known, but an official announcement could even be within the next few days - again we're getting into the window where in recent years Shimano have been announcing New Stuff.

..... It also appears that like SRAM, the cassettes will go down to a 10T top gear, which will dictate a change in freewheel body design, because 11T is the smallest that can fit on the standard hub design. Again, whether Shimano swallow their ego and adopt the SRAM XD freewheel body design or do their own thing remains to be seen, although the latter would not surprise me..... (They could also pull out the old Capreo 9T-compatible hub design uprated to XTR-tech, which would give then a top gear edge over Eagle....) What happens at the other end of the cassette is also unknown, but expect similar to Eagle's 50T big sprocket....

Cheers for this info. Will be interesting to see what comes out.

The thing that really interests me is the freehub design. I can see Shimano doing their own thing, but you'd have to question what would be the point ? That just introduces yet another design standard into the market for what is really a low volume product.

Not that I care about cassettes with more than 34 teeth, but for me, it will be interesting to see what they do re 1x, and how that might translate to the road ....

Well, based on that, it's just a matter of different final sprockets, and a shorter freehub. Only a few extra sprockets to produce, and of that, they would already have the tooling, especially since they have already made it.

Cool. A nice simple solution that means any teeth above 13 are standard, and it's only the 13 tooth and below that are unique to this hub.

My friendly Shimano rep advised me today that May 28th is the date the covers come off this year's New Stuff, and wasn't forthcoming about any further details beyond what little I've already uncovered.

He did however concede that over the last decade or so Shimano HQ have focused heavily on the road side of things, especially R9100 Dura-Ace, and realised they've dropped the ball a little on the MTB side and lost a lot of ground to SRAM, and that although it brought Di2 to the dirt, M9000 wasn't the pinnacle of development that XTR should be, rather like 7900 Dura-Ace was. So although on the face of it Shimano still appear to be playing catch-up, the hint is that we could maybe see something a little bit radical.

We'll find out soon.... apparently the wraps come off on May 25th, which is only a couple of days away. Due to time zone considerations & ensuring no region sees the release before they hit Friday, I suspect we'll see the official news late on Friday night.

I've seen a leaked post from Brazil wich shows a four-pot brake caliper, which I suspect will be the "Trail" option, while the "Race" version will likely continue as a two-pot.

If you've seen the same thing I have, which appears to be a screenshot from the Shimano techdocs specifications page, that first appeared on April Fools' Day, so it may or may not be an accurate representation. The thing on it that catches my eye which I find weird is the supposed use of the same chain for both 11- and 12-sp. options.

As I mentioned in the OP, although there are some clues showing in the spec charts, nothing at all specifically relating to M9100 components has been published there.

Duck! wrote:If you've seen the same thing I have, which appears to be a screenshot from the Shimano techdocs specifications page, that first appeared on April Fools' Day, so it may or may not be an accurate representation. The thing on it that catches my eye which I find weird is the supposed use of the same chain for both 11- and 12-sp. options.

As I mentioned in the OP, although there are some clues showing in the spec charts, nothing at all specifically relating to M9100 components has been published there.

Who is online

About the Australian Cycling Forums

The largest cycling discussion forum in Australia for all things bike; from new riders to seasoned bike nuts, the Australian Cycling Forums are a welcoming community where you can ask questions and talk about the type of bikes and cycling topics you like.